


And I'm Thinking I'd Prefer Not to be Rescued

by haaaveyoumetted



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkward Flirting, Blind Date, Car Accident, Doctor! Ben Solo, F/M, First Dates, Fluff and Humor, Hospitals, Misunderstandings, Mutual Pining, Romantic Fluff, college student rey, everyone lives nobody dies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-04
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:00:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23476609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/haaaveyoumetted/pseuds/haaaveyoumetted
Summary: Based on the Curious Cat prompt:"Rey and Ben are on a blind date. After twenty minutes, one of them gets a call, one of their friends or family has had an accident. The other thinks it's an escape call, and is stricken when they leave because it was going so well. It wasn't an escape call."
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo
Comments: 20
Kudos: 112
Collections: Reylo Prompt Fills (@reylo_prompts)





	1. When Life Won't Play Along, and Right Keeps Going Wrong

Rey let her head fall into her hands as she collapsed sideways onto the couch. " _Roooseeee. Whyyyyy_ " She groaned, burying her face into the pillow she'd landed on top of. 

"I don't get why you're so against this, Rey. It's not like it's a complete blind date this time..." Rose replied, sitting on the couch opposite her. 

"It is though! I have no clue who this guy is." Rey argued, turning to face her. 

"But Hux does! He vouches for him, which you know says a lot" Rose countered. "You know Hux doesn't like anyone at work."

"Won't that just make it worse? If this date ends up being a complete disaster?" Rey asked, readjusting the pillow under her head. "Like you said, Hux doesn't like anyone at work. I wouldn't want to ruin whatever he has with the one person he can kind of stand." 

A few seconds of silence passed between them before Rey gave in and glanced at Rose. She'd seen that look on her best friend's face countless times; more than enough to know what it meant. It was the ' _it's cute you think you're getting out of this_ ' look. That was all it took for Rey to realize this was not a battle worth fighting. She'd lose either way. 

Rey sighed dramatically, throwing her hands up in the air in defeat. "Fine! I'll go." She paused as Rose let out her excited squeal. "When and where do I need to meet him?" 

x X x X x X x X x 

That conversation had happened four days ago now, and it's how she ended up here; at Maz's cafe. She had to admit, it was a cozy little shop. The lights were dimmed just enough to create a warm and inviting atmosphere in a way that she hadn't been expecting. There were several bookcases spread out along the walls, all nearly full of a variety of books; ranging from newer titles to older favorites that had clearly been well read and well loved. There were a variety of seating options, ranging from sets of tables and chairs to a circle of bean bags to a few different types of couches- all offering their own experience. She had to admit this date was already going better than most. 

She couldn't exactly say she _hated_ the upscale restaurants men had previously insisted on taking her to for first dates. They had all been lovely in their own ways; but the setting just made her _nervous._ Playing dress up to meet the dress codes could be fun with the right people, but she never felt comfortable enough in those settings to really open up or feel like she could be herself. 

This place made her feel like she could whisper all of her deepest buried secrets and wildest desires to the walls and they'd protect every single one. 

She glanced around and she tried to see if she could spot a man matching the description Rose had given her. She didn't have much to go on, but her best friend _insisted_ she'd know him when she saw him, whatever that meant. 

_And oh how she had been right._

Rey felt her breath catch in her throat as her eyes landed on a man sitting at one of the small tables in the very back corner. She couldn't see much of him from where she was standing, but she'd have to be blind to miss the perfectly disheveled, nearly shoulder length dark hair; the long limbs that barely fit comfortably, both underneath and above the table. Rose had said he'd be tall, and even sitting down Rey could tell he had a few inches on her at least- and she wasn't a particularly short woman. 

She took a deep breath and willed her feet to start moving in his direction. As she approached his table, he looked up and caught her eye, his lips twitching into a hint of a smile. 

_Oh no. He's just her brand of attractive._ The other men she'd been set up with had been attractive in more conventional ways, which got a bit boring after a while. But this guy... she'd be lucky if she could string sentences together properly. She had not come prepared for this. 

He stood abruptly as she stopped a few feet away from him, running a hand through his hair. "Hey.. Rey, right?" 

_Oh god his voice. Oh no this is bad._

"Yeah... yes! Hi. You're Ben, right?" She wanted to bang her head against the table right then and there. She was determined to not stutter and stumble her way through this entire night. 

He nodded in confirmation and held out his hand. "Yes, Ben, nice to meet you." 

She placed her hand in his and regretted it immediately. His hands were fucking huge. "Nice to meet you too" She replied, breathier than she intended. 

Ben walked around the table to pull out her chair for her and she couldn't help but smile brightly at him as she took her seat. He took basically one step and was back at the other side of the table, sitting down to face her. 

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting, I hope you haven't been sitting here for too long?" Rey offered, twisting her fingers together as she felt her nerves already getting the better of her. 

"Oh no, not at all. It's fine, really." Ben replied. "I spend a lot of my free time here anyway, so even if you had kept me waiting..." his sentence trailed off and he shrugged. 

"I have to say, I'm a bit disappointed I'm just discovering this place now..." Rey added, stealing a few glancing around the room before her eyes landed back on Ben. He was smiling at her softly, a warmth in his eyes that she wasn't ready for. His face- his eyes especially- didn't seem to hide any of what he felt. She didn't know if she'd ever met anyone so open upon first meeting her. 

He nodded, seemingly in understanding. "It's a hidden gem. I've never quite found anywhere else like it." His tone was fond, and it was easy to understand why. "It's nice though, in a way. I want Maz to have all the success in the world... but part of me knows it would lose... something. It wouldn't be quite what it is now- how it _feels_ now- if everyone knew it was here." 

Oddly, Rey knew exactly what he meant. "This place feels like it would protect me, if I opened up enough to let it." She didn't even know if what she was saying would make sense outside of her own head- until the answering smile bloomed on Ben's face and she couldn't help but mirror it. 

"I'm glad that you like it" he spoke softly, as if the mood around them would evaporate if he were to disturb it by speaking too loudly. "I've never quite been brave enough to bring a first date here... but Hux insisted that something like this would be appropriate." 

She felt like she was being let in on a big secret of his, something that was only safe to let slip out in a place like this. "None of the guys I've been on first dates with have ever taken me somewhere like this.. and 99% of those have been Rose's doing, so she seems to be picking up on little things like that." Rey replied, shaking her head fondly. 

"I can't say that I've let Hux set me up on first dates often... though that doesn't seem to discourage him from trying." Ben replied with a fond smile. 

"I try to resist as often as possible- come up with some of the most ridiculous excuses. It works about half of the time." Rey said, the same fond smile on her face. "I know that Rose means well, and it's not like she's ever put me in a bad situation with the dates she sets up for me.. it's just... I don't know." Rey shrugged. "This is fantastic first date talk. I'm sure Rose would kill me if she knew I was talking about how much this isn't a priority for me, in front of you." 

Ben chuckled. "Trust me, I get it. Hux knows that dating isn't really a priority for me either and he'd be giving me the biggest death glare right now if he knew I was telling you that." He conceded. "Though I do think it's better that we're honest with each other when it comes to what we're looking to get out of this." 

Rey nodded. "I promised Rose that I would actually give you a chance. I think it's only fair that I keep my word." Her eyes flicked down to stare at his lips without realizing it, before looking back up to his eyes. "Unless you just want to hang around long enough to convince Hux that you actually showed up." 

"I'm already here, and Maz's is my regular cafe... so I think I can stick around for a bit, listen to all the bad 'first date' stories you can think of." He replied, a playful smile tugging at his lips. 

Her smile brightened and she leaned forward, closing a bit of the gap between them. "Lucky for me, I have enough to last us at least an hour." She responded, a twinkle in her eye. His voice was continuing to make her feel very very strongly, and she wanted to spoil herself with it for as long as possible. 

"Surely you can't have _that_ many. There have to be some decent men still out there in the dating world." Ben stated curiously, eyebrows raised. 

Rey hummed in contemplation. "Most of them meant well, like I said, I've never felt unsafe and there have only been a handful that have turned out to be complete dickheads... but it didn't keep a lot of dates from being boring, or hilariously, painfully awkward." 

Ben nodded, seemingly in understanding. "I can relate to that. But, enough about me for now. Please, continue." 

Rey blew out a deep breath and rested her chin on one of her hands. "Where to begin... _oh!",_ the excitement seemed to flow out of her as a memory popped into her mind. 

They had been sitting at the table together, talking for about 10 minutes at the most, and Ben was already completely enchanted by this woman. She was so _adorably_ expressive and cheerful and charming and _beautiful._ He was already in way over his head. 

"... so _after_ he knocked over his water and basically covered the whole table with it, he proceeded to jump out of his seat and _strip his shirt off_ in front of the whole restaurant! He was fit but god it was mortifying. I don't think I've ever been so flushed in my entire life." Rey relayed, a hand pressed to her mouth as she laughed her way through it. "He spent the whole rest of the date with a suit jacket on with no shirt under it. And his trousers were still wet!"

There was a stunned expression on his face as he laughed along with her. "How do you end up in situations like this?! I've heard bad date stories before, but what you're telling me is just beyond anything... I... wow." 

"I promised to entertain you with first date stories and I didn't come here to disappoint." Rey replied, still trying to get her laughter under control. 

"Clearly", Ben replied. He opened his mouth to offer a story of his own when a ringing cut through the air around them. 

Rey stood up slightly as her hand urgently flew to the pockets of her jeans. After a slight struggle, she pulled it from one of the pockets and shot him an apologetic glance and answered the call. "Hey Rose! Sorry, I'm just... I'm still on my date with Ben and-" Her soft smile immediately turned to one of panic in an instant. "Rose- _Rose_ slow down. just tell me what-" 

Ben felt his own concern rising in his chest, despite not being able to hear the other side of the conversation. 

"- okay, okay. Just- I'll be there as soon as I can, okay?" Rey replied, running a hand over her face. She quickly wrapped up the conversation and set her phone down on the table with shaking hands. "Ben, I'm so sorry- but I just... I have to go. Rose needs me-" 

She stood quickly, pushed her chair in and picked the phone up from the table. Before Ben could even get a word out, she rushed through the cafe and out the door, leaving him speechless. 

_What the hell just happened?_

Ben had thought the date was going well; like, _really really_ great. As he wracks his brain, he can't think of a single thing that went wrong, or felt awkward or seemed to indicate that she wasn't having a good time. 

This wouldn't be the first time where a girl picked up 'an emergency call' as an excuse to leave... but none of them had ever left him feeling as disappointed as he did in that moment. 

_But what if there actually is an_ _emergency?_

It's not like it's impossible that she was telling the truth. Unless she was a very, very well trained actress, he doubted she could just _become_ that level of highly distressed from nothing.

But then again, what did he know.

He groaned, letting his head fall into his hands and made either the stupidest or best decision he'd probably ever make. He scrambled from his seat, flying through the shop and out the door after her. If she really was distressed about a real emergency, she'd be in no state to drive. He had to hope she hadn't already sped off. 


	2. Tell Me Something Good

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm probably going to end it here with the two chapters? unless you guys want more but otherwise thank you for reading! <3

Rey cursed down at her phone, hands shaking as she refreshed the ride share app for what felt like the hundredth time. She didn't have a car, and the hospital was too far away to run to- even for someone as in shape as she was. "Fuck fuck _fuck..."._ She felt the anxiety building as the app continued to tell her she 'couldn't be connected with any drivers at this time'. This was just her _fucking_ luck. 

"Rey!"

Her head whipped around in both directions until her eyes landed on Ben, jogging towards her from the direction of the café. "Ben... what are you-"

"Rey", he repeated as he breathed out heavily. "I'm glad I caught you. Let me give you a ride." 

She felt her eyebrows raise in surprise. "Are you- are you sure? You really don't have to do that."

Ben shook his head, "I insist. No one should drive like... well." He paused, trying to find the words. "You seemed pretty shaken up when you ran out of there and I just want to make sure you get there safely."

Rey opened her mouth and then closed it again, not knowing how to respond. "I mean... I didn't drive here but... I can't find any available drivers on this _stupid_ app and I just need to get there." She sighed as she ran a hand down her face. 

"Seriously, it's not a big deal. My car is just over here", Ben insisted, gesturing over his shoulder. 

Red nodded silently and began following him to the other side of the parking lot. They remained silent as they reached the car and climbed inside once Ben unlocked it. 

"Where do you need me to take you?" Ben asked softly, still hoping and praying to whoever would listen that this wasn't some giant ruse to get away from their date.

"Chandrila General Hospital" Rey offered without hesitation, wringing he hands together in her lap. She glanced at him and offered him a strained smile and turned back to look out the windshield, a faraway look in her eyes. 

Ben could have navigated them to Chandrila General half asleep; he felt like he did that most mornings anyway. He put most of his focus into his breathing, trying his best to stay calm for her sake. He wasn’t necessarily stressed out. It took a lot to do that to him now, with all of the close calls on operating tables and the late nights afterwards where his hands would shake from the pent-up adrenaline. Now he felt more like he had to tread carefully because of how new all of this was. He didn’t know how Rey preferred to be treated in moments of distress. He didn’t know if she’d want him to reach across the console and take her hand in his. He had no idea if she was the type of person who didn’t want anyone in her personal space when she felt like this. He didn’t know if he should try to make conversation to distract her, or to just leave her with her thoughts because she knew how to work her way through them.

So, he kept his eyes on the road, trying to focus on quieting his own thoughts.

It took them about 10 minutes to reach the hospital with not much traffic on the road at this time of night. He pulled into his employee parking spot near the front of the building, jumping out of the car as soon as he had put it in park and turned it off to meet her on the other side.

Just as he was about to ask Rey if she knew where her friend had been taken, she took off running towards the entrance. It only took about a second for Ben to realize what had happened and started running after her. He caught up with her just as she reached the nurses’ station.

“Hi, I’m looking for Kaydel Connix or Rose Tico? I received a call that there had been an accident?” Rey relayed politely, slightly out of breath from her sprint to get there.

“I can have a look if they’ve been checked in Miss, but I won’t be able to give you any other information unless you’re family.” The nurse replied as kindly as she could, clearly ready for some pushback.

Ben understood that feeling well- not knowing if someone was going to freak out at you because of information you could or couldn’t provide them with, or hospital policies you had no control over in general. He hesitated briefly before taking a step to stand next to Rey.

“Doctor Solo!” The woman – Jessika, if he recalled correctly- greeted him.

“Good evening Ms. Pava.” Ben greeted, a hint of a smile on his face. “We know you won’t be able to give us much, but can you confirm we’re at the correct hospital? Maybe check if we’re in the correct waiting room?”

She smiled at him in understanding. “Let me take a look and see what I can find.”

Rey glanced over at him curiously. They hadn’t gotten to talking about what they did for work before their date was interrupted. “Thank you. Busy night?”

She shrugged, her focus still on the keyboard and monitor in front of her. “No worse than normal. No real emergencies yet. It’ll be a miracle if it stays that way.”

Ben nodded, knowing the feeling all too well.

“You two are definitely in the right place. Ms. Kaydel Connix was checked in about 20 minutes ago… I don’t have anything on a Rose Tico here…” Jessika offered. “I can go check the room, see if Rose is there?”

“Thank you, Jessika, that would be great.” Ben replied.

The woman nodded in acknowledgement as she stood, walking out from behind the desk and towards the patient rooms.

“This might take a bit… maybe we should take a seat?” Ben offered.

Rey looked at him directly for the first time since they’d left the café. “Yeah, you’re probably right.” She sighed audibly and started walking towards a section of empty seats.

They silently sat down next to each other, both fidgeting to find comfort in the infamously uncomfortable chairs. Rey let her head fall into her hands, already feeling a headache coming on from the emotional whiplash of the night, combined with the awful fluorescent lighting that shined down on them. She hadn’t even noticed that her leg had started to shake until she felt a very warm, very large hand lightly touching her to still her movements. She lifted her head to look up at him.

“This may be a silly question, but are you alright?” Ben asked, voice barely above a whisper.

Rey swallowed thickly and nodded. “I think so… I just- it’s hard when I don’t really know many of the details. Rose sounded so upset and I’m hoping that it was just adrenaline from being in the moment and stressed out because it was all happening and not because it was actually bad.”

She felt Ben slide his hand up her leg slightly, gently taking her hand in his. “I know, I’m sorry. I wish I could do something…” He shook his head and hesitated slightly before continuing. “I’m not on shift tonight but… I can try to go see who the doctor is, see if I can find anything out?”

“So, you actually are a doctor then?” She asked.

“I am. We didn’t quite get that far…but I’m a Surgeon, at this hospital, of all places.” Ben replied. “It’s the first night off I’ve requested in a long time, I should’ve assumed I’d end up back here somehow.”

She cracked a small smile. It was enough for him to feel like he was doing something right. He glanced down at his hand that had somehow ended up on her thigh _and_ one of her hands. She seemed to notice it at the same moment he did, both of them immediately pulling away as if they’d experience a shock to their system. They laughed awkwardly, shifting in their seats.

Ben cleared his throat as he stood up. “I’ll be right back; I’m going to figure out who’s overseeing this case.”

Rey nodded silently; her eyes remained on his retreating back as he disappeared down a hallway. She didn’t know whether she should laugh or cry about the fact that he was a fucking _doctor_ because of course he was. She had no idea how she had missed the connection. She knew that Hux worked at the hospital. Rose _had told her_ that it was someone he worked with. At the moment, she couldn’t bring herself to analyze just how dumb she felt about the whole thing- not when she had a friend in the hospital and no word on her condition at all.

She eventually found herself counting the tiles on the floor and then eventually the ones on the ceiling. It wasn’t something she had ever tried before, but at the moment it seemed to be doing just enough to keep her mind off of everything else.  
This night had gone from the best night she could remember having in a long time to an absolute nightmare faster than she knew how to handle. To be fair, she didn’t know many people who’d be coping with the situation well. She thanked whatever God was possibly out there listening that she had Ben with her. He remained calm and his presence had kept her from having a complete meltdown. If she had been by herself when Rose called her- had been sitting here by herself the whole time… she didn’t even know what kind of state she’d be in.

It felt like an eternity had passed before Ben reappeared. She tried to read his face as he made his way back over to where she was sitting but couldn’t get enough of a read to come to any conclusions.

“So the good news is, I found the doctor and I found your friend Rose. She wanted me to tell you she’ll be out to see you as soon as she can. Kaydel is in surgery right now but before you start freaking out, it’s nothing major. She’s going to be fine.” Ben said, his eyes never leaving her face.

Rey let out a deep sigh of relief, shaking her head. “Well that’s a relief at least. I know I’m not going to feel completely at ease until I get to see them… but it’s not all just uncertainty now. So thank you for that.”

“You’re welcome.” Ben replied. “Look… I’m not…” He cleared his throat before starting again. “Do you want me to stay? I know I said I’d drop you off here… and we don’t really know each other all that well but… do you want to be alone right now?”

“I- you don’t need to stay here, Ben. I really appreciate you driving me here… but like you said, it’s your night off and I’m sure the last thing you want to do is sit at work.” She replied, forcing a small laugh.

“Rey. I’m more than happy to sit here with you for as long as you need. But only if that’s what you want.” Ben replied softly. “But if you don’t… that’s okay too. I just need you to tell me what you want.”

Rey took a shuddering breath, her gaze turned down to her lap. “I don’t want to be alone.” She whispered just loud enough for him to hear her.

Ben gently reached over and placed a finger under her chin, guiding her gaze back up to meet his. “You’re not alone.”

She sucked in a breath, eyes wide and full of something he couldn’t quite place. If he had to give it a name, he’d probably call it hope or relief. He couldn’t deny that those same emotions were flowing through his veins in a way he wasn’t expecting. However messed up it may be he didn’t want this night with her to end. This was hands down the most unique date he’d ever been on – especially for a first date. He was hoping that this hadn’t completely scared her off of considering going on a second one at some point. 

He tried not to think about it too much, knowing that was easily the furthest thing from her mind at the moment, understandably. He was convinced that if they could make it through tonight still wanting to see each other again, they could most likely survive another date together and even possibly enjoy it.


End file.
